HISD to start process of renaming Confederate-linked schools

Board to take first step in changing Confederate-linked monikers

Updated 7:01 pm, Wednesday, September 9, 2015

Photo: Rice University Courtesy Of Spec

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Dowling Middle School was named after Richard Dowling, a Confederate army officer. According to the most recent data from the 2013-14 school year, the school is now 57.7 percent Hispanic, 40.3 percent African American, 0.4 percent Asian, and 1.1 percent white. less

Dowling Middle School was named after Richard Dowling, a Confederate army officer. According to the most recent data from the 2013-14 school year, the school is now 57.7 percent Hispanic, 40.3 percent African ... more

Photo: Rice University Courtesy Of Spec

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Jackson Middle School was named after Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson, a brigadier general in the Confederate army. The school is now 87.6 percent Hispanic, 10.7 percent African American, 0.1 percent Asian and 1.2 percent white. less

Jackson Middle School was named after Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson, a brigadier general in the Confederate army. The school is now 87.6 percent Hispanic, 10.7 percent African American, 0.1 percent Asian and 1.2 ... more

Photo: Encyclopaedia Britannica/UIG, Getty Images

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Davis High School is named after Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederate States of America. The school is now 88 percent Hispanic, 10.8 percent African American, 0.1 percent Asian and 0.9 percent white.

A statue of Jefferson Davis, first president of the Confederacy, is pictured outside the state capitol building in Montgomery, Ala.

Davis High School is named after Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederate States of America. The school is now 88 percent Hispanic, 10.8 percent African American, 0.1 percent Asian and 0.9 percent white. ... more

Photo: Stephen Saks, Getty Images

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Johnston Middle School is named after Albert Sidney Johnston, a general in the Confederate army. The school is now 49.3 percent Hispanic, 32.9 percent African American, 3.3 percent Asian and 12.5 percent white.

A statue of Johnston statue on the campus of the University of Texas is pictured June 23, 2015.

Johnston Middle School is named after Albert Sidney Johnston, a general in the Confederate army. The school is now 49.3 percent Hispanic, 32.9 percent African American, 3.3 percent Asian and 12.5 percent ... more

Photo: Nicole Cobler/San Antonio Express-News

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Lee High School, which has notably stopped using the "Robert E." portion of the school's original name, was named after the commander of the Confederate army. The school is now 71.6 percent Hispanic, 15.7 percent African American, 7.8 percent Asian, and 3.7 percent white. less

Lee High School, which has notably stopped using the "Robert E." portion of the school's original name, was named after the commander of the Confederate army. The school is now 71.6 percent Hispanic, 15.7 ... more

Photo: MCT

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Reagan High School is named after John H. Reagan, postmaster general and secretary of the treasury of the Confederacy. The school is now 83.3 percent Hispanic, 8.6 percent African American, 0.5 percent Asian, and 4 percent white. less

Reagan High School is named after John H. Reagan, postmaster general and secretary of the treasury of the Confederacy. The school is now 83.3 percent Hispanic, 8.6 percent African American, 0.5 percent Asian, ... more

HISD to start process of renaming Confederate-linked schools

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The Houston school board will take the first step Thursday toward renaming campuses with monikers tied to the Confederacy.

The trustees plan to start the process with a vote to revise the district's policy to state explicitly that names should be non-discriminatory. The revised policy also details how the board can initiate renaming schools.

Board president Rhonda Skillern-Jones said this week that after the policy gains approval, she will propose renaming at least six schools named after Confederate leaders or loyalists.

In June, state Sen. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston, called on the Houston Independent School District to rename six campuses following the shooting deaths of nine black churchgoers by an alleged white supremacist in Charleston, S.C. Ellis mentioned campuses including Davis, Lee and Reagan high schools and Dowling, Jackson and Johnston middle schools.

Alumni have expressed mixed reactions.

Renaming is expected to come with a cost - for new logos, school uniforms, marquees. The estimated price tag was $250,000 in 2013 when HISD changed the Confederate-linked Rebels mascot and three others deemed offensive to Native Americans.

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To rename a school after a living person, HISD's proposed policy would require a unanimous vote from the school board. A simple majority would suffice for names after the deceased.

The proposed policy also allows the district to accept donations for naming rights to all or part of a school. The superintendent would be required to develop guidelines, and accepting the funds would take a two-thirds majority vote.

At least 188 public schools nationwide were named after prominent Confederate leaders or places as of a few years ago, according to an analysis of federal education data by the media website Vocativ.

The Charleston shooting set off a national debate over Confederate symbols. In July, the Confederate flag was removed from the grounds of the South Carolina statehouse.

In late August, the University of Texas removed a statute of Jefferson Davis, the Confederate president, from the main mall to be housed in a museum on the campus. The Sons of Confederate Veterans tried to block the move, but a state district judge gave UT the go ahead.

"I'm pleased to see the HISD board move in this direction," Ellis said in a statement Wednesday. "As an extremely diverse school district in the most diverse city in the nation, the names of our community schools should not lionize men who dedicated themselves to maintaining the ability of one human to own another."